Never duplicate content. Also, never duplicate content.
“What sets (REDACTED NAME) apart from everyone else? We provide complete online marketing AND branding packages that free you up to focus on your most important revenue-generating activities. PLUS, we’re unique because we are 100% dedicated to serving the (INSERT YOUR) industry.”
Small business owners have plenty to focus on. The promise of being able to get new, fresh content on your site without giving it a second thought is compelling. But if that content is being aggregated from a service and is the same duplicate content that lives on another website, you’re not benefitting from it. Here’s why:
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You’re not showing how your company is different.
Why should a customer buy from you and not from a competitor? You’re different. The way you communicate that to your customers matters. Every blog article, every news story, every page on your site can help set you apart from your competition.
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You’re not providing thought leadership.
As a business owner and an expert in the field, you have an opportunity to stand out from the crowd and lead. If you don’t lead, your competition will. If your company is in the financial services industry, showing thought leadership helps a customer understand why your approach to investing is better. If you sell pet health products, why do you choose to carry only one particular brand of CBD treats and not the many other brands flooding the market? Your thought leadership is communicated as your perspective on any topic you choose. It sets you apart from the competition. The content on your site gives you the opportunity to tell customers why you’re the leader and not a follower.
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That’s not how it works.
There are only a handful of giant content producing sites that readers will browse through for a good read. Magazine sites. Newspaper sites. Or names like BuzzFeed, Huffington Post and Vice. The rest of us are introduced to new content when it is emailed to us directly because we’re subscribers, or we find it interesting enough to stop our scroll when we see it on our social media feeds. Whether you’re looking for business to business and industry news on LinkedIn, helping pass the time on Facebook, or anonymously trolling your elected representatives on Twitter, you’re being targeted based on your profile with relevant content that you want to read. The last thing people want to read is the same content with someone else’s logo on the top. That drops trust in your brand because you’re not being authentic. When you do build your own content, the goal is always to bring someone back to your website where they can be exposed to the rest of your products or services.
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You’re not being found online.
When someone types in a Google search, Google will figure out which article will come up first, second, and third. If the content on your site is the same as someone else’s, you may not even show up in the results. Moz is a great resource for Search Engine Optimization (SEO). According to Moz, “Duplicate content is content that appears on the Internet in more than one place. That ‘one place’ is defined as a location with a unique website address – so, if the same content appears at more than one web address, you’ve got duplicate content. When there are multiple pieces of appreciably similar content in more than one location on the Internet, it can be difficult for search engines to decide which version is more relevant to a given search query.”
Having your own new content is key. That content can be used to build your SEO ranking so you come up first when customers are ready to buy. It can be used in social media to bring people to your website. And it can set you apart from your competition.
That doesn’t mean your website content plan needs to take all your time. As outsourced marketing has become more popular, outsourcing your content creation and copywriting services is an easy way to have ongoing content at the pace and volume you choose. When you do outsource your content, make sure your content team is on the same page with your brand’s tone and topics. Your SEO efforts should also align with any paid search advertising you do. Expertise in your industry can be transferred to your team in an interview. It doesn’t need to consume your weekend. Go ahead, take a rest for a change. And if we can help take a load off, let’s talk.